Ziplining in Costa Rica's Monteverde Cloud Forest

Selvatura Park is an 850 acre conservation area located in the Primary Forest of Monteverde (altitude 4000 feet) and includes an outstanding canopy tour giving participants a feel of being within the canopy and part of the forest. The tour consists of 13 cables from 16 platforms and ends with a Tarzan Swing. There is a total of 2 miles of total cable length, with several over 1000 feet in length and the longest being over 3000 feet long! It is suitable for people of all ages. First you don your safety gear, including hard hat, harness, and pulley assembly...


Speeds in excess of 50 mph can be reached on the steeper runs and you get a real feel of freedom and soaring as you zoom through the forest canopy. Here comes Len...



...and here's Ellen on another cable...



You are instructed how to wrap your gloved hand behind your head and around the cable without touching it, prepared to tighten your grip if you need to brake at the end. You don't want to brake unless the guide at the landing platform tells you to brake or you'll lose momentum and have to pull yourself hand-over-hand backwards back up the cable to the platform. Or the guide will pull himself over to you and help you get to the platform. The next person won't be allowed to leave the sending platform until you are clear of the wire.


It's all a very safe and efficient system and makes you feel secure, letting the exhilaration of the ride be your dominant emotion as you zoom hundreds of feet above the jungle floor.

And here's some HD video footage I took...